Why Switching Accountants Doesn’t Need To Be Painful

Switching to a new contractor accountant isn’t as difficult as you might imagine

For freelancers and contractors, the very thought of the hassle that tends to be involved with switching accountants is enough to stop them from doing it. Far too often, switching contractor accountants is a long-winded, convoluted process with a lot of toing and froing that makes it an altogether unpleasant experience. But it doesn’t have to be this way – and switching accountants shouldn’t mean you spend precious time and energy sorting through your accounts and digging around for company information before you hand things over to a new firm.

In this article, we’ll explain how a smart, not to mention trusted, contractor accountant will make the switching process quick, simple and more often than not, free.

A seamless switch

Imagine that you’ve found your new contractor accountant and have also told your current accountant that you’ll be leaving them when your agreement ends – a small word of warning, it’s always worth checking your contract for any exit fees, which ideally you don’t want to be stung by. When your contract is up, you won’t want to be tasked with organising the move across to a new one – you’ll likely have enough on your plate as it is given that you work for yourself.

Fortunately, you don’t need to worry about that too much these days – your new contractor accountant should take care of everything on your behalf, including:

1. Seeking professional clearance

Getting in touch with your old accountant to request professional clearance and that they send over your history of accounts.

2. Penning a Letter of Engagement

Writing a letter outlining the agreement, fees and service your new accountant will provide. All you need to do is check it over, sign it and return it.

3. Confirming authorisation

Next, your accountant will contact HMRC with your permission to act on behalf of your company. Once this has been confirmed, you’re all set.

The above is the typical process – the road that most contractor accountants will go down. However, at QAccounting, we go one step further, appointing you a dedicated Account Manager whose job it is to get to know your company, its goals and your aspirations in business. With a strong understanding of what drives you, we’re better placed to help you going forward.

Ditch the switching fees

Legwork aside, another particularly offputting thing about switching to a new accountant is the potential cost involved. While not eye-watering, some will charge you a handover fee depending on how much work needs to be carried out on your company accounts. Others may expect you to pay for the time they spend onboarding you as a customer, although online accountants, whose fees should be totally transparent, tend not to.

QAccounting does things differently to a lot of other firms, and providing your accounts are up to date, we won’t charge you a penny to switch over. Meanwhile, our fixed-priced accountancy packages mean that if and when you do make the move, you’ll know exactly how much you’re spending each month on your accountancy services.

With over 20 years’ experience in supporting contractors, QAccounting is one of the UK’s leading accountants. To learn more about switching to QAccounting for free, please request a callback – one of our friendly and knowledgeable contractor accountants will be in touch.